Acknowledging Someone's Ability
by Koshimae Ryo
Summary: Echizen had a unique ability to sense spirits, and Fuji found out about it and caught his interest. He thought that it might be a good idea to use it to have what he wanted.
1. Chapter 1

**AN****:** Hi, minna-san! This is fanfiction, right? So I can do ANYTHING I want in my story. I mean, this story is a little weird for me. Tell me what you think of it, okay? If it's good, then I'll continue it. Otherwise, I'll just leave it like that.

**Another Note****:** This chapter will be about the cat pair, but in later chapters, it will eventually turn into a thrill pair. That is, if I DO continue this…

* * *

**Prologue:**

Echizen Ryoma supposedly had a psychic talent. He could see, hear and feel spirits. But his ability was unique from the others who had this ability. Phantoms could do things to Ryoma what they could when they were still living. Like, for example, when a ghost slapped our poor Ryo-chan, Ryoma would react the way he would when a normal person slapped him. It would hurt him depending on the force used by the spirits like in normal people. Most of the times, it's hard for Ryoma to tell whether that being was a spirit or not. He talked to his family about it, but they didn't believe him and said that maybe, it was just his imagination. So he thought that it might be better if he just kept it to himself, and that's the reason why he was so quiet and didn't usually give replies for more than one sentence or syllable. He wasn't sometimes sure whether he or she was a person or not, unless other people could see him or her, too.

**...**

**Chapter 1: Mienai**

It was Sunday, and Ryoma was having a restless night. He was just staring blankly at the ceiling of his room while lying on his bed. It wasn't just today. He didn't get any sleep last night either. He then realized that it was no use tossing around in order to have the right position to be comfortable with it and have a nice and peaceful slumber. His precious Himalayan feline had already been sleeping, so why hadn't he? He sighed and thought that he had nothing else better to do, so he tried to shut and conceal those golden eyes with hint of annoyance and kept himself still. He had school tomorrow, and he needed his rest as much as possible.

**...**

Apparently, it was useless. Ryoma didn't get any sleep at all, and he had just gotten out of the bed resignedly when he heard his clock went off. Bags had grown under his eyes and fatigue hit him. He ate breakfast in order to have at least enough energy for the whole day. He scowled when it wasn't Japanese style. But he just ignored it, including the fact that his family was worrying about him about how he looked like- well, his baka oyaji was making fun of him and that his kaa-san reprimanded the pervert for doing such a thing, but he knew that he was also worried about him.

**...**

He walked to school- just walked- not caring if he was going to be late for practice. After all, if his _beloved_ buchou ordered him to run a _few_ laps as punishment, it might ease that drowsy feeling that he had right now. Then, he yanked his head backward, covered his mouth with his hand partly, and yawned.

After that, he cursed when he felt his head throbbed. Before he entered the club room, while he contemplated on how many laps his evil buchou might give to him, at the corner of his eye, he noticed that the tennis courts were empty. He raised his brows in perplexity. Then, something or _someone_ interrupted his thoughts when a certain annoying senpai suddenly came out of nowhere like a mushroom and hugged him like there's no tomorrow.

The young boy struggled to free himself, and at the same time, he tried to inhale as much oxygen as possible. "K-Kikumaru…sen…pai…c-can't…b-breathe…" He managed to choke out, and the red-headed player quickly let go of his poor ochibi-chan. "Oh, sorry, ochibi-chan. It's just that I really miss you so much, nyaaa~" Ryoma didn't look at his senpai, not showing how irritated he was for being so tired- he didn't want to be rude to his senpai.

"Demo, Eiji-senpai, we just didn't see each other for two days…" '_Don't you think you're just over reacting, ne, senpai?'_ Ryoma took note that something was odd about his hug, but he just dispelled that thought away. Maybe it was just him- not having enough rest. He turned the knob of the door, only to witness a really atypical scenario of the team.

Ooishi was mourning and the others were shaking, as if they were confining themselves not to cry. His buchou was standing by the corner; his face stayed nonchalant, and his arms were crossed, though there seemed to be something peculiar about the expression of his eyes. The usually closed eyes of the sadist, Fuji Shuusuke, were open, and being serious. Momo and Kaidou were not having a warfare. The two were doing the opposite. They were just not in their usual selves. And the not-so-good-with-his-two-years-of-tennis-experience Horio was behaving! Something was definitely wrong.

"Echizen…" Someone finally noticed the arrival of the ever-so-late prince. '_Did someone die?'_ Ryoma thought before he muttered, "What's wrong?" The others gaped at him like he was some sort of man who didn't know that the world was ending. "R-Ryoma-kun… you m-mean you didn't know?" Katou's eyes were swollen and red, obviously due to crying, and his voice was hoarse and broken. Ryoma raised his brows, looking like a curious little kitten.

Momoshiro leaned to his best friend, knowing for the fact that he hadn't checked on his phone, because the kid hadn't answered their calls and messages. He wanted to go to his house, but he had to look after his siblings while his parents were away for the weekend. He explained to their baby boy why they were acting like that.

What Ryoma had heard made his spine chill and made his face go pale. '_Eiji-senpai is dead? But-' _Fuji, upon noticing his kouhai's reaction, began to worry and muttered, "Echizen…?" And for that, the whole team noticed the look on the freshman's state.

He was so still like he had just seen a ghost- well, in a matter of fact, he did feel AND heard his dead senpai. He tilted his head and for some reason, the red head phantom was still there, waving his hand at him and jumping like an idiot. "O-oi, Echizen, daijoubu ga?" '_What happened to him? I didn't expect him to act like this. And why does he look like he hadn't gotten any sleep for days?'_ Momo noted.

"D-demo, senpai-tachi…" The 12-year old in shock muttered, almost inaudible but loud enough to be heard by the others inside the room. Tezuka took a few steps until he was right in front of Echizen. "Doushita, Echizen?" He demanded. "K-Kikumaru-senpai…" Ryoma wasn't looking back at them. He's still looking at Kikumaru in disbelief and in a sinister way. Tezuka furrowed his brows and scowled.

Finally, Ryoma averted his focus back to them. The next thing that he had stated to his teammates made everyone fall into silence. Kikumaru had given him a death hug before he entered the room? Kaidou paled after hearing that. Earlier that day, he was in distress and now, he's downright so scared. No! He had to be brave! Damn it! He hated scary things, like Inui-senpai's poisonous concoction, not to mention of what was happening right now. Then, he wondered what happened to that cursed racket and to that Echigo guy. At that time, he ran off and hid himself inside the science lab. He couldn't bear hearing Inui-senpai's story about it.

"Echizen, don't joke about Eiji!" Ooishi reprimanded. He would NOT tolerate this. How could he be so insensitive! He was really depressed about it. The last time that they had seen each other, the two had a quarrel. Ooishi was stressed at that time and couldn't help himself to be irritated by his partner's childish behavior. The mere disagreement of the two turned into a big fight, and for that whole day, they ignored each other's presence. When he got home on that same day, he felt really guilty, and that, he wanted to apologize to his partner personally at the next time they would see each other. But now, that wouldn't be possible.

"Yeah, Echizen, you shouldn't do that. You just couldn't." Momo agreed with his senpai. "Fsssshhhh…"Kaidou tried to calm himself down. Then, Inui suddenly spoke. "Knowing Echizen, he isn't a type of person who would make some sort of a joke." Tezuka looked at their youngest teammate intently. He had to agree with Inui. Echizen was more sophisticated to just make up something like that. But the thing that he had just said was just impossible to happen. "Are you sure about that, Echizen?"

If Ryoma had worn his cap, he would have tugged it down. But he wasn't changing to his proper attire yet, so he just merely said- "I-ie, betsu ni, senpai-tachi. Just forget about it." After that, he strutted off. Of course, no one would believe him. Stupid senpai-tachi. Stupid Kikumaru-senpai. It would be pointless to say something any further, so he just headed for class.

Unbeknownst to the young prodigy, a certain tensai was watching him intently, as if he knew that Echizen wasn't lying at all. "Saa, Echizen, so you could see him, too… Omoshiro ne… "

* * *

Class was really boring, especially when Echizen knew that it's English time. He wanted to doze off, but his dead senpai would't let him, so he just focused his attention on the view by the window. "Nyaaa, ochibi isn't listening." Said the red-head ghost while hanging around his former kouhai. The latter just continually ignored him. It would be weird if someone else in this room would see him talking to no one. They might think that he's crazy.

Eiji pouted. Ochibi was being mean. Afterward, the teacher caught their attention. "Echizen-kun, will you go to the board and write your own examples of sentences including their sentence patterns?" Che, that was so easy. And so, said lad stood up and started showing off. Kikumaru and the others stared at the board. It's written in English. It's written in cursive. His other classmates couldn't understand what's written on it.

Even the teacher was surprised. He had to admit- his student might be better than himself. They were written in perfect English, and his ideas were impressive. He even used up the whole board for it. But he wouldn't want to say those muses out loud. He sweat-dropped. "V-very good, Echizen-kun. You can now return to your seat."

Ryoma didn't pay any heed to him and returned to his seat. Then, he twitched at Kikumaru's behavior. "Sugoiiii, Ochibiiii! You're really good at this, nyaaaa~" The hyperactive ghost cheered while he kept on poking Echizen on the back of his head. Subsequently, the younger boy just decided to play along and smirked. "Mada mada da ne, Kikumaru-senpai" The latter pouted. "Ochibi, don't be so mean!"

After that, Eiji accidentally hit Ryoma a little too hard, which made his former koukai cry out "I-itte!" It's almost inaudible, though, but that's enough to make his other classmates tilt their heads and stare at him with sheer perplexity. "Is something wrong, Echizen-kun?" It seemed that his sensei also noticed. "I-ie… It's nothing…" By the time that no one else would notice him anymore, he turned to his idiot former senpai and gave him his death glare and supposedly, it only made him look really adorable. "Oh, sorry about that, Ochibi-chan~"

The bell rang- signaling that it's lunch time. Echizen wasn't really in the mood to eat, so he decided to get some sleep at the rooftop. But Eiji wouldn't stop following him. He sighed resignedly. Maybe he could just talk to him when he got there.

* * *

Well, that's chapter one! I hope you liked it. ;3

I'm still working on my other story, "Recollecting and being recollected". I don't know when will I post it, though, but I'll try as soon as possible. ^.^

That's all! PLEASE REVIEW! =.= If you don't like it, then I won't continue to the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N.:** Hi, everyone! ^^ I would just like to thank the following for their reviews: BadyGuz, thfourteenth, herbblood, HiKaRi-ChIbI (You could really see ghost? :o Sugeeee…), ryoka-chan, DarkAndStormyNight, CherriAme, EchizenRyomaLover (Thank you for your idea^.^), FiOeX, and Fujiwara Ai; and I apologize for my late update. I was really busy. XP I was truly glad that you liked my idea. XD

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**Chapter 2: Azamuku no Kangae**

"OCHIBI, TELL ME MORE! TELL ME MORE!"

Eiji chanted for the umpteenth time that day. Apparently, his former red-head, grating senpai was TOO amused, hearing Ryoma's paranormal experiences. Echizen groaned inwardly, knowing that the older teen wouldn't intend on stopping until he complied.

Flashback:

_Ryoma sauntered his way to the vending machine, since the registration was still in progress, and for the fact that the tournament hadn't started yet. A little moment later, he was now inserting a few yens into the machine. The kid heard the sound of a filled tin can of soda hitting metal, so he crouched a little to the opening of the contraption to pick it up._

"_Sigh… I feel really sorry for you, kid... You and your team are in biiiig trouble…" The owner of that voice said in an honest, pitiful tone._

"_Doushita?" The cat-eyed boy questioned apathetically before taking a sip from the soda that he was so obsessed with._

"_What the…? You can hear me?"_

"_Hn…"_

"_Sugeee… You have psychic talent!"_

"_Tch!"_

"_Uh… Oh yeah… about your question… I don't think Ooishi will be able to play tennis for a while…"_

"_Nani ka atta?"_

"_He injured his wrist for saving a pregnant woman…"_

_Echizen tilted his head to face the phantom and narrowed his eyes. He could clearly remember his worthless and lame excuse for being tardy. He then turned his heals to join his other senpai-tachi._

"_Ja…" He bid before he left the ghost._

**...**

"_Ooishi is really late" muttered Inui, after he glanced at the clock._

"_Is he lost or something?" Eiji derided._

"_That can't be it, since the tournament was held here last year …"_

"_Could he be helping some pregnant woman about to give birth?"_

_Eiji tackled Echizen from behind. "That's the excuse you used last time!"_

"_That hurts…"_

_Ryuuzaki-sensei checked the time._

"_But he really is late… Ooishi-senpai…" Momo noted._

"_Worst case scenario, we'll use a dummy…"_

"_A dummy…?"_

_Then Momo and Eiji did something idiotic to Katsuo. Later than that time, Ryuuzaki-sensei's phone rang, so she answered the call, and she certainly didn't expect that Ooishi was at a nearby hospital for helping a pregnant woman about to give birth._

"_See! I told you so!" The spirit from earlier suddenly appeared behind Ryoma and clapped the latter's back for the fact that the ghost was right all along. That made the 12-year old choke from his drink._

End of flashback…

"Masaka, ochibi… You mean- you really knew all along?"

Eiji yelled to his seemingly already deaf kouhai. Hell, it's already in the middle of the night! Why couldn't spirits get tired? The raven-haired teen groaned that Eiji took that as an affirmation.

After that, there was an uncomfortable stillness. Echizen wondered at the sudden awkwardness, and then, it hit him. The golden pair still hadn't made up with each other after their misunderstanding. It might have been really frustrating for the former tennis player to not be able to talk to his aibou and tomodachi ever again, at least not until Ooishi's faithful day.

"Nyaa, ochibi… do you think Ooishi's already forgiven me?"

"Hn…" The younger teen hummed with a sad smile.

Eiji somehow believed that, and it cheered him up a little, so he muttered an 'Arigatou' before he FINALLYasked his kouhai to get some rest, in which the latter complied with, for he was really exhausted.

**...**

_Ryoma walked in what he assumed as an endless maze. He just knew he was somewhere inside an old mansion near the cemetery. It was certainly odd when he ambled down the stairs and apprehended that it was an underground vault. _

_Everything was dark, since it had no window. There wasn't any breeze, yet it was eerily too cold and he was oddly sweating. What was he sensing? He swallowed when he realized he was adrift in the darkness. He really couldn't see anything, and being inside the labyrinth with no one around to help him, he didn't think he could escape so easily._

_He then heard a hoarse sob to his left. His curiosity swallowed him, so he walked to its direction. What greeted him was a woman with long, dark tresses, curled up to her knees, as she whimpered. Ryoma didn't pay any heed that she was literally glowing. He reluctantly meandered until he was a feet away to that certain being, and a chill suddenly ran down to his spine._

_He swallowed yet again, and he suddenly felt so heavy that it made his heart clench. The only things he could hear were the whimper and his own heartbeat- nothing more. At that mere moment, his breath hitched when a cold hand ran down to his cheeks. His chest began to hurt when his heart picked up its speed. An ominous whisper reached to his ear, and the golden-eyed lad could practically feel its owner's lips, in which it twitched to a malicious grin._

_A sadistic titter was heard over the stillness._

_Before he realized what was happening, Echizen was pinned down to the cold floor by a hand that was choking him right at that moment. He couldn't do anything, as he couldn't move, as if at that moment, someone else's soul was taking over his body. His body had already been numb when the spirit hauled out a diminutive, black stone._

_It glowed threateningly, as the apparition chanted to the stone- a spell that would fulfill his duty in order to be finally free from their leader; however, it was disrupted, when a new voice chanted another spell that annulled something that was meant to be done and failed. Accordingly, it made the phantom diminish into thin air._

_The intruder ran to the boy as soon as he was done eradicating his enemy._

"_Echizen, talk to me."_

"…_Why… are you…?"_

_He didn't finish when his body gave up. His mind was becoming blank and his golden eyes were slowly being lidded. The person next to him was coaxing him to respond, but it was inadequate._

"_Ryoma, Ryoma!"_

**...**

"-chibi… Ochibi… Echizen, wake up!"

Ryoma finally opened his eyes. A drop of liquid ran down his temple, and then he swallowed between his gasps. What was that dream all about? But that wasn't a dream, was it? Those kinds of beings had always communicated with him in his dreams. But that one was different. It seemed that he almost died…

But _he_ was there…

"Daijoubu, ochibi-chan?"

"H-hai..."

A sigh of relief was heard, and after that, he glanced at the clock and decided to do his daily routine.

Afternoon practice…

A pair of sharp eyes with sapphire irises studied his kouhai who was doing some few stretches. He withdrew a sigh and let his own smile grace his feminine features. He was glad that he had made it in time before _they_ obtained _it_ from Ryoma.

**...**

It's peculiar to see the club so lifeless. Tezuka, on the other hand, just sighed wearily. Eiji wasn't too cheerful also. He was looking at Ooishi who was playing against Taka whilst his mind was lost in his own reverie. Ryoma heaved a sigh. He didn't want to do it, but maybe, he had to do a favor for his former senpai. He would not WANT to do this again.

"Kikumaru-senpai…"

"What is it, ochibi?"

"If you want… you can use me to talk to them yourself…"

Ryoma pulled the brim of his cap to cover his face, or probably his embarrassment.

Eiji stared at his ochibi, whilst he was trying to comprehend what the boy had said to him. And then his eyes widened when he realized that Echizen was trying to give him a really big favor. It's actually not like him to do something like this. The red head shook his head inwardly. He should have known that ochibi was really a good boy despite his mean attitude.

"Are you sure about this, ochibi?"

Ryoma just grunted in reply, and the other merely smiled in gratitude.

**...**

The tensai's eyes were still open. He continued to stare at his 'two' teammates, as Momoshiro approached Echizen. He could see that the sophomore was trying to have a talk with his friend, but the latter was not responding. He then chuckled inwardly at _'Echizen's'_ sudden behavior.

"Unyaaaa~ Momo-chan! I missed you so much, NYAAAAAA~!" _'Echizen'_ yelled cheerfully, as he attacked Momo and hugged him. By now, everyone had halted their errands and gawked in disbelief. The next thing that they could apprehend was that _'Echizen'_ was now running toward the other direction, leaving Momo who was still in a daze.

"NYAAAA~, Ooooiiishiiiiii!"

"E-Eiji…?"

No… It couldn't be! Ooishi might be going crazy! But he knew that tone from everywhere. Well, he didn't really know what's going on, but he swore he felt that he wasn't mistaken at all. Maybe he just had to prove it.

...

...

...

"Echizen, do you want to play doubles with me?"

"Nani?"

Eiji just nodded, though he was confused by Ooishi's weird request. Then again, maybe he just needed to prove to his former aibou that he was indeed who he really was, for now, I meant.

**...**

Ooishi approached Tezuka and informed him that he would be playing doubles with Echizen. Tezuka raised his brows, though it was almost unseen if not looked intently. The captain just nodded in affirmation.

"If you want, I can pair up against Taka and play against you." Fuji suddenly proposed which made the vice-captain almost jump in surprise.

"H-hai, arigatou…"

**...**

Most of the team members couldn't believe what they're seeing. Since when did Echizen learn how to play doubles? More importantly, why was he playing and talking exactly like Eiji? This was really creepy… It didn't seem like he was in the 'state of self-actualization'. It's merely just like they were watching the golden pair again.

The match ended in which Echizen and Ooishi had won. The latter was once again staring at his partner in disbelief. He then allowed his tears to run down on his cheeks, as he let his own smile be plastered on his face. Only Eiji would make him feel that way in a game.

"So, Ooishi, do you believe me now?" Ooishi just nodded in honesty.

"G-gomenasai…" Ooishi finally said, and his tears were now running like a river. He just couldn't bear what he was feeling at that time. He was really happy that he could talk to his friend again, but at the same time, his heart was aching for the fact that this wouldn't last for any longer.

"Hihihihi, daijoubu, daijoubu~!" Eiji chanted happily, as some tears also trickled on his cheeks.

Afterward, the remaining group ran to the two that made Ooishi and Eiji/Echizen explain what's going on. For a moment, there was silence while the others tried to comprehend the story. But then, some of them reacted that this whole thing was just absurd. Eiji tried to prove himself; conversely, only a few were convinced. Some of them were hesitant, and the others just didn't believe it.

They tilted their heads toward the gate, however, when they heard that their coach announced that practice was over for the day. Most of them simply left without a word, except for the regulars and the freshmen trio.

"Wow… that was really awkward…"

"Fssshhhh…"

"Yeah… Who would have guessed that senpai would possess Echizen?"

Fuji smiled authentically while the others talked to Eiji/Echizen. Echizen certainly looked so adorable with Eiji's personality. But then, he frowned when he perceived that something was amiss. He gazed at the group, before a certain data man caught his attention. The tensai narrowed his eyes when he realized that Inui didn't look bothered and just continued to collect data like what happened earlier was the most normal thing in the world.

"Eiji!"

"Oi, daijoubu ga?"

Fuji abruptly tilted his head towards Echizen. He should have seen that this would come. Echizen's body couldn't take it anymore. He then ran to him to check his condition. He couldn't afford to fail his mission, or else, it'd be over. After making sure that the boy was all right, he glanced at Inui once more, only to realize that he had already disappeared.

**...**

"_**Naru hodo… just keep a close eye on him for now…"**_ instructed the person from the other side of the line in a nonchalant, yet piercing voice.

"Hai… I'll make sure of that…" Inui ended the call and flipped his phone shut, before he pushed the frame of his glasses.

"Echizen Ryoma da…" He smirked.

_To be continued…

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_

Sorry if it's a little boring… That was still chapter two after all! XP

Anyway, how was it? Can you guess who Fuji's and Inui's accomplices are? PLEASE REVIEW! ^^


	3. Chapter 3

**A.N.:** Ehehe… It's been a while… Anyway, please excuse me for my grammatical errors and other imperfections in the previous chapters. I just couldn't seem to get myself revising them (not to mention, my other fics). Doing that would be rubbing salt on my wounded ego. **–shivers- (-.-;;)**

Anyhow, I'd like to give many thanks to those who reviewed: HiKaRi-ChIbI, thfourteenth, ryoka-chan, SilverHaraki, Gone and forgoten., EchizenRyomaLover, RileeTheRiddler, xxSnowxxAngelxx, liar-just-a-liar, bran626, Amy-sama90, Lady Queria, lovefan123, aNiMeLoVeRs21. X)

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**Chapter 3: Hakuchi**

He was awoken by something that belonged to someone who was stroking his locks, and that was the time he decided it wasn't healthy to sleep anymore. It was a bit hard to comprehend with his sleep–induced mind what time of the day it was, not to mention he felt so uncomfortable. His whole everything ached, and he still felt tired even after he slept for what seemed like what? Twenty hours?

"Saa… You've been out for some time… about eighty-four hours, I'd say…" The male by his bed said so suddenly and casually, as if reading people's minds was the most normal thing to do.

Ryoma took that notice to sink in. Seconds later, he shot up and threw his sheets, awake. What the-? eighty-_four_ hours? He dozed off for three and a half _days_. And, man, he thought he was just joking earlier.

But a full one-twentieth of a minute later, his upper body felt like jelly from the earlier impetuous reaction. He instinctively placed his hand on the side of his head as if to steady himself. Tch, where had those three days of luxury gone off to? It wouldn't be normal to still feel dizzy, would it?

Though, he froze when he heard the other person in the room chuckle.

"Now, now… you shouldn't move so hastily. We wouldn't want you blacking out again, now, would we?" said the aforementioned person by the bed as he held the boy's shoulders to lie him down to continue his supposedly not-needed-anymore rest.

Ryoma, on the other hand, groaned in protest and scowled (Fuji thought it was a pout), but acquiesced, nonetheless, and sighed in resignation. It took him another moment to realize that something was amiss. He gave his Fuji-senpai a blank stare.

"Hm?" The brunet cocked his brows, smiling innocently.

"Why're _you_ in _my_ room? And where's Karupin?" He didn't _dare_ feed his dear feline any toxic substances, did he? After all, a certain broom-haired 'best friend' of his- as Momoshiro insisted on calling their rather close bond as that- warned him about the tensai's nature of sadism.

It didn't help alleviate the 12-year-old boy's wariness when his senpai let out another chuckle.

Then again, his mind started reminiscing way back before he passed out and asked, "Where's Kikumaru-senpai?" It was then he realized that he wasn't on his own bed. Nor was he looking at the walls and door of his room. You know what? It wasn't his room at all!

Fuji, noting that his endearing and _unusually curious_ kouhai finally understood his mistake in his first query and the answer for the second, iterated, "Well, Echizen-kun, I think we already know the answers to your first two questions…" he trailed off to a pause- his face suddenly becoming somber- and opened his eyes to stare into the other's own, "as for Eiji… we'll about to lose him if you don't do something."

Even as the tennis prodigy stared back defiantly at the blue-eyed pubescent male, he couldn't help the feeling of befuddlement. He vaguely registered that his senpai was hovering above him and had yet to let go of his shoulders and to realize his invading of the boy's personal space. He cocked his brows questioningly, urging the other to continue. Fuji just gladly relented at the silent request, but not before he put back his typically cheerful mask, "Saa... you _do_ know what you can do isn't normal, ne?" He chortled and let out an enigmatic smile, "Not normal for a normal human, anyway..."

That earned him a wary look from his kouhai.

"Just what do you mean, senpai?" said Echizen suspiciously, and a bit irritated that Fuji couldn't just get to the point.

The younger teen let out a slight involuntary shudder at the sight of his senpai's slowly widening smile. Fuji leaned closer to the boy's ear. "You can control death, Echizen Ryoma. You're a shinigami," came out almost inaudibly, but no doubt that Ryoma still heard it VERY clearly. The boy shivered at the unbecoming and spontaneous gesture.

Ryoma gawked at him, stupefied. "_What?_"

Fuji Shuusuke's smile couldn't possibly get any wider. Things just couldn't get more interesting. "You heard that clearly, Echizen-kun."

If Ryoma didn't like something in the happening, he'd narrow his eyes, which he did. "Do you think I'll believe anything you've just said?"

"Won't you?" Fuji asked right back.

Ryoma thought for a moment and shook his head. He sighed and shrugged, "Maybe."

Fuji raised his brows, ever unconsciously showing his elegance, "Oh?"

"How do you know all these?"

A light closed-mouth chuckle. "I have my ways."

"And, you expect me to _believe_ you?"

"Saa ne... Do you think there's a reason lying to you like this?"

Echizen waved his hand dismissively, finally noticing Fuji's sincerity, "Fine." It wasn't like Fuji-senpai to pull off such pointless stunt, anyway. He lied back on the bed and closed his eyes to relax. Why was he tired still? And his mind was nagging him to sleep. _Again_. "Does kaa-san know I'm here?"

Fuji hummed in affirmation, furrowing his brows at Ryoma.

Ryoma half-opened his eyes to look at his senpai, only to see him smiling a little, but thought he saw Fuji eyeing him worriedly just before that. Still, maybe he was only imagining it. "What did you tell her?" he asked.

"No need to worry, Echizen-kun," Fuji assured, as he tucked Ryoma to make him comfortable, and added, "just rest. Tomorrow will be a strain."

Echizen shot Fuji a curious look. What the heck did he mean by that? Well, whatever it was, he'd know very soon. No need to dwell on the thought. He wasn't really surprised when the older teen told him he was a shinigami, anyway. Someone else beat his senpai to it already years ago. He just didn't expect that Fuji was the one to note that to him this time, and that he completely forgot that he was, since he already stopped thinking about it. Heck, he didn't even _believe_ it when that 'someone else' told him that back then the first time.

Now that he thought of it, that person, too, wasn't the type to pull off that kind of ludicrous and pointless stunt, even if they were still little children when that happened.

Ryoma's eyelids finally drooped, even before realizing that his breathing had evened out. How he could manage to talk when he just woke up after three days without drinking any liquid was really weird- not that it was any of his concern at the moment, though.

The last thing in his mind was that he had no idea how to do something about Kikumaru-senpai.

Fuji took his time admiring the sleeping boy. Unfortunately, it didn't take that long as he heard another bout of racket caused by two healthy teenagers throwing each other insults downstairs.

"Naha. Might as well get back to the others." There's that other person to deal with, too.

_What are you up to, Inui?_

_…_

All Seigaku regulars, or rather, what's left of the team, were gathered in the living of Fuji's residence.

"Fuji." Ah, the deep, commanding voice of their dear buchou.

The effeminate young male cocked his head to the side. "Hm?" he hummed curiously; though, he already knew what he wanted. Just getting a little fun trying to change Tezuka's usual constipated expression when his patience was to be played a bit. Fortunately, or not, he wasn't the least in the mood. He inwardly chuckled when he heard Tezuka let out an exasperated sigh and saw him rub his temple.

He directed a glance to their two kouhai-tachi glaring daggers, as if trying to kill each other with just that. Apparently, Tezuka already dealt with them. He then decided to be nice and to make it easier for Tezuka. After all, he'd already had enough of the madness about his team mates.

"Echizen woke up," said Fuji so casually, as if merely announcing that dinner's ready. Ironically, Momoshiro's ears perked up giddily at the mention of his burger buddy and best friend. Although, he wasn't quite as vibrant as he used to be, given that his equally lively senpai was no longer physically present to share his excitement with. _Not yet,_ Fuji mentally corrected.

"So, how is he?" Ooishi was the first one to ask. He felt like he owed their little freshman a lot for Eiji, and it seemed as though that he was back to his old 'mother-hen' self again (though, not entirely) when he fretted for the last few days about Echizen not waking up yet. Well, who wouldn't? Echizen could easily have everyone think he was in a state of coma. More importantly, they didn't know how long they could keep their charade from Echizen's parents.

It was a good thing there was a week off from school, and they could lie about having a tennis camp.

"He's fine, Ooishi. No need to fret," replied the azure-eyed teen.

"Ah, senpai, can we go see him?" asked, surprisingly, Kaidou a bit shyly.

"Sure you can! Though, you may not want to talk to him while he's asleep."

"I thought you said-"

"He wanted to sleep again."

"And you let him? But he hasn't eaten for three days! What if-"

"Oh, calm down, Ooishi. I'm sure Echizen-"

"Demo, Fuji-senpai! He'd been sleeping for _three days! Four days_ and he might-"

The usually composed Tezuka could feel his left hand ache with the need to palm his face in frustration, but held himself, not wanting to lose it. "MINNA," he barked with no room for argument, and expectedly, silenced everyone in the room effectively. That happened, or else, they could be silenced in some other way they didn't want to know. "Fuji," he said for the second time that day with a powerful stare, but the tensai seemed undeterred by such gesture. It made Tezuka a bit annoyed that it only mounted Fuji's mirth.

"Maa, Tezuka, don't worry about Echizen. I'm sure he'll be as good as new tomorrow."

"Aa," came a curt reply. He fixed his glasses and checked the time. It's already late. Tezuka announced that they should be going. He gave a polite bow to Fuji, "Sorry for imposing you like this."

"Not at all," Fuji said with a smile. Tezuka nodded and the others bade their goodbyes while Fuji showed them to the front door. Then, they were gone.

Except for their data man.

Fuji regarded Inui with a hard stare.

"Ninety percent chance you already told him." Inui turned his heels, ready to leave. "Watch yourselves from now on."

"Saa, pray tell me how much you _do_ know, Inui."

"I'm afraid I can't, Fuji." _Just following orders,_ was left hanging in the air, and then a "Ja." With that as finality, he sauntered off.

…

"Fuji-senpai," Ryoma started with a glare.

"Hm?"

"Why are you on the bed?" And to prove his point, he shifted uncomfortably between the little space that was bordered by the older male and the wall behind him. He scowled when his senpai ignored the question and decided to lightly laugh it out. He sighed and settled on forgetting about ever asking on it.

"Come, Echizen-kun, let's fix ourselves. And you _really_ need to eat!"

"Hn."

Ryoma gave him a curious stare when Fuji gave him a bag his own clothes, and the latter merely gave him a charming smile. He shook his head, knowing better not to ask any more questions like that if he wasn't going to get any sensible replies from Fuji. Well, his senpai still had the decency to lead him to the bathroom and to allow him to take a bath if he wanted to, at least. Then Fuji told him it'd be just the two of them in the house.

It wasn't long before they finished eating Japanese-style breakfast, much to Ryoma's delight, in relative silence. Fuji excused himself after that, saying he had to make a phone call. He gave his guest an apologetic smile. Though, Ryoma didn't see any reason for him to be apologetic about, so he only shrugged.

Without bothering to make the call private, Fuji flipped his phone, pressed a few keys and placed it on his ear. He paused as he patiently waited for the other person to pick up. "He woke up," he said after a while.

_ "… Sou ka. Ore-sama shall be there in ten minutes," _he heard the receiver of the call say.

"Hn, ja." Fuji ended the call and put the phone back in his pocket. He then averted his attention back to Echizen who was giving him a weird look.

_…_

True to his words, the person Fuji called arrived ten minutes later. The brunet expected no less. After all, this person, too, expected no less. This conceited teen amused him so. Not at the moment, however, for after the said teen came in and was directed to Echizen by Fuji, he did something so out of the blue that the tensai had to open his eyes.

The grayish-purple-haired teen haughtily strutted towards Echizen and boldly gave the younger boy a _peck_ on the cheek.

The two Seigaku players, stunned to silence, were rendered rooted at their respective spots.

"Monkey King," Fuji heard the boy hiss. Granted, he was more than perceptive enough to see the addressed young man twitch in the slightest; it was gone as soon as it came.

In the mind's eyes of Echizen and Fuji, the smirk of one Atobe Keigo appeared to be very _infuriating_.

"Tsk, tsk. Ryoma," Atobe started out mockingly with, "had you not a trifle of decency as to address your _boyfriend_ with such abominable name, ahn?"

The freshman snorted and sneered, "Tch. Baka. I was _five_. How would I know?"

"Hmph, brat." The self-proclaimed king of Hyoutei flicked his fine-looking tresses; subsequently, a smug look crept on its way to the narcissist's magnificent façade. "Well, matters aside, ore-sama supposes you have finally had some sense to believe him, as Fuji-kun was kind enough to freshen up your memories, na?" He cast a glance at the tensai's direction, but he almost visibly shuddered at the terrifying image that met his eyes. The sadist's piercing azure eyes were so sharp that they might as well drill through Atobe's pretty head and kill him on the spot. It was highly unnerving the intense stare somehow complemented his blissful smile.

Fuji inwardly leered when Atobe flaunted his haughty self to mask off something that might degrade his pride. He certainly hadn't any knowledge of what he had just learned just then. So Atobe already told Echizen about his surprising nature as a shinigami. Not only that, but the two of them already knew each other and went as far as having such a relationship at an awfully early age. One thing that bothered him so much was that Atobe _knew_. He knew things out of normalcy that he shouldn't right then.

Also, from what he could gather from Atobe, the pompous teen seemed to have already anticipated Kikumaru's demise. He appeared to have waited a few more years for something like this to happen, too.

Fuji did not like this and had a bad feeling about all this. Atobe was certainly hiding something, but the tensai knew better not to trust him.

Tbc.

* * *

I apologize if the chapter is too short for your liking.

Okay, so some of you may still be confused by this story, but don't worry; it'll get better soon. If you have any question(s), feel free to ask. Also, I hope you don't mind my writing that a shinigami can control death. (I can't imagine Ryoma becoming one, but I fancy the idea. XP) Oh, and don't worry about Atobe. It'll still be a thrill pair. (Hehe… can't help it. I also love Royal Pair. XD)

Thank you for reading! Please review. Concrits are also welcome. ;3


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